Five Down and Glory:

The definitive history of the aces of the American air forces from World War I to the Korean Conflict. Included also is a complete compilation of ace fighter pilot''s victory tallies, for every war, every theater, and every service in which aviation was a fighting part.

“IN reading Captain Gene Gurney’s Five Down and Glory, you will find that none of our surviving aces were reckless daredevils. None of them was motivated alone by a burning, all-consuming hatred for the people they were fighting. None of them achieved Acedom through selfish egotistical drive for personal glory. None of them was introverted.

They were all warmly human individuals with close ties among their Squadron mates. None of them became Aces because they were concerned only with fighting against an ideology—nor for an ideology. They fought for other people and for their own survival.”-Foreword by Captain Eddie Rickenbacker